The use of social media by presidential candidates during Namibia’s 2019 election campaigns in Windhoek
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Date
2025
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University of Namibia
Abstract
Social media has emerged as one of the most effective communication platforms for
attracting voters during electoral campaigns. The study aimed to assess how social
media was used during Namibia’s 2019 Presidential election campaigns by the top
three political parties: the Southwest Africa People’s Organisation (SWAPO) party,
the Independent Patriots for Change (IPC) party and the Popular Democratic
Movement (PDM) party. The study was based on a pragmatic approach and utilised
an explanatory convergent parallel mixed-method research design. The study sample
consisted of 385 respondents from Windhoek, three (3) Party Coordinators from the
top three political parties (SWAPO, IPC and PDM) and three (3) social media
platforms, namely, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, respectively. Data was
collected through online questionnaires, structured interviews, and a content analysis
scheme. Descriptive statistics were used to describe frequencies with data
presentation in graphs and charts, while qualitative data were thematically
categorised and presented narratively. The quantitative and qualitative data sets were
compared, contrasted, and integrated to produce a single interpretation, thereby
drawing appropriate conclusions. The study established that previous literature
indicated that Facebook and WhatsApp were the most used social media platforms
in Namibia, whereas this study showed that in Namibia, Facebook, Twitter, and
Instagram are the most used social media platforms with Telegram and YouTube
being the least used platforms. The study also found poor social media engagement
between Windhoek residents and political candidates during Namibia’s 2019
presidential election campaigns. The study recommended that political parties make
more use of social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to
communicate and engage with voters and share more political content to entice
voters
Description
A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts in Media Studies
Keywords
Social media, Windhoek residents, Presidential campaigns, Party Coordinators, Social Media Engagement Theory (SMET), Namibia, University of Namibia